With less land and much fewer people, Paraguay was mostly forgotten by the rest of the world until TheThirties, when they fought the [[ChacoWar Gran Chaco War]] against Bolivia. As the name suggests, the war was fought over the Gran Chaco, a hot, mosquito-infested piece of land that's almost worthless (except for rumors of oil). Paraguay actually won this fight. Francia's breeding policies did create a unified culture, unlike racially-stratified Bolivia, giving Paraguay the edge. The League of Nations helped to end this war, one of the few things they ever did that might be considered a success.

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With less land and much fewer people, Paraguay was mostly forgotten by the rest of the world until TheThirties, when they fought the [[ChacoWar [[UsefulNotes/TheChacoWar Gran Chaco War]] against Bolivia. As the name suggests, the war was fought over the Gran Chaco, a hot, mosquito-infested piece of land that's almost worthless (except for rumors of oil). Paraguay actually won this fight. Francia's breeding policies did create a unified culture, unlike racially-stratified Bolivia, giving Paraguay the edge. The League of Nations UsefulNotes/LeagueOfNations helped to end this war, one of the few things they ever did that might be considered a success.

When Francia died in 1840, a series of juntas took control. Power was finally consolidated by Carlos Antonio Lopez, who was more of a typical dictator. Things got interesting when his son, Francisco Solano, came to power. Helping him was his wife, an Irish courtesan named Eliza Lynch, whose presence scandalized Paraguayan high society.

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When Francia died in 1840, a series of juntas took control. Power was finally consolidated by Carlos Antonio Lopez, who was more of a typical dictator. Things but things got interesting when his son, Francisco Solano, came to power. Helping him was his wife, an Irish courtesan named Eliza Lynch, whose presence scandalized Paraguayan high society.

When Francia died in 1840, a series of juntas took control. Power was finally consolidated by Carlos Antonio Lopez, who was more of a typical dictator. Things got interesting when his son, the bloated and vainglorious Francisco Solano, came to power. Lopez Jr. wanted ever so badly to be the next Napoleon, and decided that he'd do just that. Helping him was his wife, an Irish courtesan named Eliza Lynch, whose presence scandalized Paraguayan high society.

What followed was the WarOfTheTripleAlliance, one of the bloodiest wars you've never heard of. Lopez mucked around in the politics of neighboring UsefulNotes/{{Uruguay}}, eventually causing enough trouble for Uruguay to declare war against him, actually [[EnemyMine causing long-time rivals]] UsefulNotes/{{Brazil}} and UsefulNotes/{{Argentina}} to join Uruguay. Paraguay did have a big army, but any rational observers could tell that Paraguay was doomed. Sadly, rational observers were in short shrift under Lopez, who'd achieved a cult of personality.

The war raged until most of the Paraguayan troops lay dead in the field. This didn't stop Lopez, however, who began to conscript children and the aged to fight at the enemy, having them throw rocks when they ran out of bullets. Loving their leader to the bitter end, the Paraguayans kept fighting and losing. And by the time a lowly Brazilian {{mook}} named Corporal José Francisco Lacerda finally killed Lopez, it is estimated that '''90%''' of Paraguay's male population had died out.

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When Francia died in 1840, a series of juntas took control. Power was finally consolidated by Carlos Antonio Lopez, who was more of a typical dictator. Things got interesting when his son, the bloated and vainglorious Francisco Solano, came to power. Lopez Jr. wanted ever so badly to be the next Napoleon, and decided that he'd do just that.power. Helping him was his wife, an Irish courtesan named Eliza Lynch, whose presence scandalized Paraguayan high society.

What followed was the WarOfTheTripleAlliance, one of the bloodiest wars you've never heard of. Lopez mucked around in the politics of neighboring UsefulNotes/{{Uruguay}}, eventually causing enough trouble for Uruguay to declare war against him, actually [[EnemyMine causing long-time rivals]] UsefulNotes/{{Brazil}} and UsefulNotes/{{Argentina}} to join Uruguay. Paraguay did have a big army, but any rational observers could tell that Paraguay was doomed. Sadly, rational observers were in short shrift under Lopez, who'd achieved a cult of personality.

doomed.

The war raged until most of the Paraguayan troops lay dead in the field. This didn't stop Lopez, however, who began to conscript children and the aged to fight at the enemy, having them throw rocks when they ran out of bullets. Loving their leader to the bitter end, the Paraguayans kept fighting and losing. And by By the time a lowly Brazilian {{mook}} named Corporal José Francisco Lacerda finally killed Lopez, it is estimated that '''90%''' of Paraguay's male population had died out.

* Welsh author Tristan Jones, whose autobiographical books are a tangled mixture of fact and fiction, once visited Paraguay. In one of the more clearly fictional episodes, he is invited to dinner by Alfredo Stroessner in honour of his nautical achievements, and instead of behaving like a polite dinner guest, delivers an epic TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Stroessner and his Nazi henchmen.

The war raged until most of the Paraguayan troops lay dead in the field. This didn't stop Lopez, however, who began to conscript children and the aged to fight at the enemy, having them throw rocks when they ran out of bullets. Loving their leader to the bitter end, the Paraguayans kept fighting and losing. When a lowly Brazilian corporal named José Francisco Lacerda finally killed Lopez, it is estimated that '''90%''' of Paraguay's male population had died out.

to:

The war raged until most of the Paraguayan troops lay dead in the field. This didn't stop Lopez, however, who began to conscript children and the aged to fight at the enemy, having them throw rocks when they ran out of bullets. Loving their leader to the bitter end, the Paraguayans kept fighting and losing. When And by the time a lowly Brazilian corporal {{mook}} named Corporal José Francisco Lacerda finally killed Lopez, it is estimated that '''90%''' of Paraguay's male population had died out.

!!Paraguay in fiction:* ''Series/{{JAG}}'': In the last two episodes of season 8 and the first of the 9th season, Mac goes undercover as Clayton Webb's wife on mission in Paraguay where they aim to stop terrorist Sadik Fahd from establishing a base.----

Paraguay in fiction:* ''Series/{{JAG}}'': In the last two episodes of season 8 and the first of the 9th season, Mac goes undercover as Clayton Webb's wife on mission in Paraguay where they aim to stop terroist Sadik Fahd from establishing a base.

Paraguay in fiction:* ''Series/{{JAG}}'': In the last two episodes of season 8 and the first of the 9th season, Mac goes undercover as Clayton Webb's wife on mission in Paraguay where they aim to stop terroist Sadik Fahd from establishing a base.

Paraguay managed to maintain its democracy before Fernando Lugo's extremely swift impeachment, and will hopefully continue to do so after the next elections. Though a leftist, Lugo, a former Catholic priest, had to make compromises with the right-dominated Senate. He was impeached by Congress following a fatal clash between police and protestors. It occurred extremely swiftly, leading to some within and without to criticize it heavily. [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all there is to say on that for now.]] Will things continue on a democratic path? One can only hope...

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Paraguay managed to maintain its democracy before Fernando Lugo's extremely swift impeachment, and will hopefully continue to do so after the next elections. Though a leftist, Lugo, a former Catholic priest, had to make compromises with the right-dominated Senate. He was impeached by Congress following a fatal clash between police and protestors. It occurred extremely swiftly, leading to some within and without to criticize it heavily. [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all there is to say on that for now.]] Will things continue on follow a democratic path? One can only hope...

->This flag is unique in that it has different obverse (shown here) and reverse emblems. Its blue, white and red colors are similar to that of the UsefulNotes/{{Netherlands}}. The obverse seal features a red circle with the country's name in Spanish on it, surrounding a yellow star in a blue circle flanked by olive and palm branches. The reverse side shows a lion sitting in front of the Phrygian cap of liberty, atop which is a scroll which reads "Paz y Justicia" ("Peace and Justice").

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->This flag is unique in that it has different obverse (shown here) and reverse emblems. Its blue, white and red colors are similar to that of the UsefulNotes/{{Netherlands}}.Netherlands. The obverse seal features a red circle with the country's name in Spanish on it, surrounding a yellow star in a blue circle flanked by olive and palm branches. The reverse side shows a lion sitting in front of the Phrygian cap of liberty, atop which is a scroll which reads "Paz y Justicia" ("Peace and Justice").

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